Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
53-2011 Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers
Pilot and navigate the flight of fixed-wing aircraft, usually on scheduled air carrier routes, for the transport of passengers and cargo. Requires Federal Air Transport certificate and rating for specific aircraft type used. Includes regional, national, and international airline pilots and flight instructors of airline pilots. Excludes “Electro-Mechanical and Mechatronics Technologists and Technicians” (17-3024).
National estimates for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers
Industry profile for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers
Geographic profile for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers
National estimates for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Mean wage
RSE (3) |
| 81,310 |
0.9 % |
(4) |
$ 198,190 |
0.4 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 100,110 |
$ 126,470 |
$ 202,180 |
(5) |
(5) |
(4)
Industry profile for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Scheduled Air Transportation |
69,170 |
17.66 |
(4) |
$ 203,010 |
| Couriers and Express Delivery Services |
3,600 |
0.39 |
(4) |
$ 277,080 |
| Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) |
3,250 |
0.15 |
(4) |
$ 115,340 |
| Support Activities for Air Transportation |
2,500 |
1.28 |
(4) |
$ 131,770 |
| Nonscheduled Air Transportation |
1,500 |
3.08 |
(4) |
$ 136,920 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
Top paying industries for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Couriers and Express Delivery Services |
3,600 |
0.39 |
(4) |
$ 277,080 |
| Scheduled Air Transportation |
69,170 |
17.66 |
(4) |
$ 203,010 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises |
170 |
0.01 |
(4) |
$ 172,780 |
| Agencies, Brokerages, and Other Insurance Related Activities |
(8) |
(8) |
(4) |
$ 145,800 |
| Nonscheduled Air Transportation |
1,500 |
3.08 |
(4) |
$ 136,920 |
Geographic profile for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Texas |
8,460 |
0.69 |
1.20 |
(4) |
$ 210,160 |
| California |
8,070 |
0.49 |
0.85 |
(4) |
$ 227,870 |
| Florida |
6,400 |
0.74 |
1.29 |
(4) |
$ 232,600 |
| New York |
6,280 |
0.72 |
1.26 |
(4) |
$ 219,980 |
| Illinois |
5,690 |
1.01 |
1.75 |
(4) |
$ 193,820 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
Top paying states for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Florida |
6,400 |
0.74 |
1.29 |
(4) |
$ 232,600 |
| California |
8,070 |
0.49 |
0.85 |
(4) |
$ 227,870 |
| Washington |
3,250 |
1.01 |
1.76 |
(4) |
$ 222,340 |
| New York |
6,280 |
0.72 |
1.26 |
(4) |
$ 219,980 |
| Michigan |
2,250 |
0.55 |
0.96 |
(4) |
$ 214,640 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
8,690 |
1.00 |
1.74 |
(4) |
$ 222,470 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
5,580 |
1.56 |
2.69 |
(4) |
$ 213,010 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
5,540 |
1.31 |
2.27 |
(4) |
$ 195,020 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
4,770 |
0.83 |
1.44 |
(4) |
$ 229,160 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
4,330 |
1.76 |
3.06 |
(4) |
$ 242,540 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO |
3,890 |
2.66 |
4.60 |
(4) |
$ 162,510 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
3,140 |
1.64 |
2.84 |
(4) |
$ 224,860 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC |
2,780 |
2.30 |
3.98 |
(4) |
$ 162,850 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI |
2,600 |
1.43 |
2.47 |
(4) |
$ 127,140 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
2,570 |
0.88 |
1.52 |
(4) |
$ 214,320 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Anchorage, AK |
510 |
3.13 |
5.42 |
(4) |
$ 182,730 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO |
3,890 |
2.66 |
4.60 |
(4) |
$ 162,510 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC |
2,780 |
2.30 |
3.98 |
(4) |
$ 162,850 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
4,330 |
1.76 |
3.06 |
(4) |
$ 242,540 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
3,140 |
1.64 |
2.84 |
(4) |
$ 224,860 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
5,580 |
1.56 |
2.69 |
(4) |
$ 213,010 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI |
2,600 |
1.43 |
2.47 |
(4) |
$ 127,140 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
5,540 |
1.31 |
2.27 |
(4) |
$ 195,020 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
2,530 |
1.20 |
2.07 |
(4) |
$ 197,820 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
8,690 |
1.00 |
1.74 |
(4) |
$ 222,470 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA |
530 |
0.35 |
0.60 |
(4) |
$ 255,250 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
2,070 |
0.92 |
1.60 |
(4) |
$ 243,380 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
4,330 |
1.76 |
3.06 |
(4) |
$ 242,540 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL |
1,050 |
0.89 |
1.55 |
(4) |
$ 240,710 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
4,770 |
0.83 |
1.44 |
(4) |
$ 229,160 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
3,140 |
1.64 |
2.84 |
(4) |
$ 224,860 |
| Cleveland-Elyria, OH |
290 |
0.30 |
0.52 |
(4) |
$ 223,330 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
8,690 |
1.00 |
1.74 |
(4) |
$ 222,470 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
(4) |
$ 219,810 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
(4) |
$ 215,460 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers:
About May 2021 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(4) Wages for some occupations that do not generally work year-round, full time, are reported either as hourly wages or annual salaries
depending on how they are typically paid.
(5) This wage is equal to or greater than $100.00 per hour or $208,000 per year.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022
United States Department of Labor
